Weekend Foodie Project
When Reg lost his job when we lived in a burb on a mountain in BC, one of the things I did to feel like I was in control was clean. Lately, I have been feeling out of control. Spinning around in circles, not knowing what is going to happen in our lives. I have kept myself so busy that I no longer felt grounded.
It was almost a treat to have a quiet Sunday to ourselves and take on the project of cleaning the fridge. We used to have to so much time on our own back then that cleaning was almost a hobby. I decided to take the opportunity to really delve into the ritual once again and really clean my damn fridge.
The hard part for me is the mess. I really do not like mess. Plus, I was in the process of making Reg’s lunch for work the next day and prepping dinner at the same time. OK, I bit off more than I can chew, it’s true. Oh there is a sneak peek at my new blender! I can’t wait to write about it!
Oh geeze… See what I mean? Stay focused Suzie… Stay focused…
Back to cleaning
I decided to not just clean my fridge but go through every flippin’ jar of whatever I had and check expiry dates. Trust me, there is nothing worse than getting sick from a funky salad dressing. I speak from experience.
I was shocked at some of the rejected items! First, there were some that I just did not like and decided to toss. It made me so sad to see so many Asian sauces had gone past their expiry date. Very revealing! I have not been doing enough Asian-inspired cooking. I realized that has got to change!
Also, the tiny jar of tahini I got had turned hard as a rock. I thought I could get through one jar before it went bad but I didn’t. I am going to buy store-bought hummus from now on. I just do not make it often enough from scratch and store-bought hummus these days is quite awesome.
Oh I was already feeling so much better!
It took me an hour to really give everything a good scrub, go through the food and put everything back in. Yes, I still have more sauces than I have produce but produce is heavy! It is hard to get home but I am going to try and stock up on real food soon.
Realizations
I wanted to clear the foodie plate and start fresh. See life with new eyes. This has helped me come to some realizations. I am discovering that I want to include food in my life in ways I never dreamed possible.
First, isn’t this cupcake hat adorable?! My friend Janet made this cupcake hat just for me! We traded for it. You can read about it here. I love the idea of wearing food-inspired clothing. Wearing a cupcake hat makes me very happy.
I am falling in love with making foodie pendants like this blue glazed donut with icing draped all over it.
I edged even closer to making “real food” foodie pendants with this butterfly candy pendant.
In this video I talk about and show how I am working on a “Spicy Foodie” pendant. I would love to hear your ideas on foodie pendants too. The more the merrier.
In my weekend foodie vlog I share that I am going to be delving into the cookbook I bought just for me The Spice Bible: Essential Information and More Than 250 Recipes Using Spices, Spice Mixes, and Spice Pastes and you know what? I think I am going to make those Shanghai Noodles this week!
Conclusion
Yes, a clean fridge is a clean slate. Clearing out the mess in my brain, getting more focused, figuring out what I want to do to bring food more into my life… Sometimes it is good to hit a wall. It helps you realize that you are not going in quite the right direction. It just takes a while to brush the dust off the map, get your bearings and take off again.
This foodie is back on track.
AvaDJ says
It’s amazing how de-cluttering your surroundings also clears the brain. I need to do that more often. Funny enough, the first things I always end up tossing when fridge cleaning is those Asian sauces as well, and I’m pretty sure my tahini is going bye bye soon too.
That is one fantastic hat!!!!
Suzie Ridler says
I agree Ava, it always helps to do a thorough declutter and clean. Oh interesting, you end up tossing the Asian sauces too? And it’s true, I never get through tahini either. Thank you! I adore that hat too. 🙂
Tournesol says
Love the clean fridge, I need to do that really soon!
sherisse doucette says
Great news! I just discovered you can get tahini at the bulk barn in sackville : )
sherisse doucette says
Great news! I just discovered you can get tahini at the bulk barn in sackville : )